Displaying a range of wares from Taiwan Paochung tea to English black tea, the Taipei Tea Culture Expo will commence at the Taipei Arena next Wednesday, drawing tea connoisseurs and industry professionals from around the world.
The exhibition, organized by the Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs and running from Wednesday through Saturday, will include representatives from six prominent teahouses run by connoisseurs in Japan, South Korea, the UK, India and Tibet, who will give demonstrations on how their countries consume tea.
"Tea is an important part of local culture and the daily lives of our people. This expo is a rare opportunity for participants to appreciate Taiwanese tea culture, as well as understand more about tea culture from around the world," Deputy Commissioner of the department Lee Bin (
PHOTO: CHENG HSUEH-YUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Making "Masala Tea" from northern India at the press conference, India connoisseur Girija Shah put "Masala" -- a mix of powdered black pepper, dried ginger, cloves, cinnamon and nutmeg -- into boiling water with tea leaves, milk and sugar.
"This is good for winter, and good for curing the flu," she said, adding that the Indians often drank the tea during gatherings of friends and family.
The exhibition will also include Japanese tea masters from Ur-asenke, one of the three main schools that teach the Japanese tea ceremony, which encompasses spiritual and religious practices.
According to Takako Onuma, manager of the Urasenke Taipei Association, all the tea sets, tea and tea snacks that will be on display are all brought directly from Japan.
"The gestures in the Japanese tea ceremony are a representation of the host's deepest appreciation to the guests. The tea ceremony is very traditional and has a long, unbroken history in Japan," she said.
Eight exhibition halls will be open to the public during the exhibition. Tickets for the performances vary from NT$300 (US$10) to NT$2,500, and are available through ERA ticketing outlets. Information about the exhibition can be found at http://tea.culture.gov.tw.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to